Nice mid spring day here in the middle of February. Out running a few errands and a stop at the tailor to take in sleeves on a shirt and new sports jacket. Charles Tyrwhitt blue linen shirt over Jos A Bank tan linen shorts with Beckett Simonon brown suede sneakers. Brown Anson belt with silver buckle with my Stetson Aficionado hat per @Alex Kilpatrick recommendation on head protection with the high noon sun walking home 4.5ish miles after dropping my wife's car off for minor repair. Also Monterey Kitty Hawk blue dial watch and Versace Eros edt. Thought I'd show the illumination on the Kitty Hawk after being in the sun for over an hour.

This evening is seeing a very rare event. It's not just a date night, but a date night during tax season! The temps warned to to the 60s today, so I'm going a little lighter - literally and figuratively. Outfit rundown: - Putty, wool felt, Pathfinder Outback hat by American Hat Makers - Cream, cotton, button-up shirt by Untuckit - Cream, Japanese selvedge denim jeans by Bonobos - Cream with tan shadow-stripes, cotton, over-the-calf socks by Nobile Italy - Tan leather double monk-strap shoes by Free Form Shoes - Tan leather belt with Rose Gold buckle by Anson Belts - Tan, suede, goatskin leather sportscoat by Daniel Cremieux - Ivory, silk, pocket square by Bonobos - Gold-toned, Game of Thrones, Hand of the King lapel pin - Gold-toned, LOTR The One Ring, silicone wedding ring by Enso - Hawaiian Koa wood and abalone ring by Happy Laulea - Sterling Silver and Picasso Marble Cabachon necklace by Bluegrass Cabachon & Jewelry SOTD: Liquid Brun by French Avenue WOTD: Commodore by Monterey Watch Company

Third fitting. One thing I asked the tailor to do, which I am beginning to doubt a little, was to sew the pleats a few centimeters lower than standard. This was dictated by the desire to make the pleats as straight as possible. I didn't capture the effect well in the photo, but it seems to make them look shallower visually. I was unhappy that the tailor did not consult me on the shape and position of the pockets in the jacket (I wanted hacking pockets) or the fastening on the trousers (he made them buttoned, when I would have preferred an elongated hook-and-eye fastening). However, the foundations seem solid. As for the jacket, the tailor put in a lot of padding, but I'm wondering if even more would be in order. I'm also considering a larger opening/slit at the bottom to visually lengthen the leg line. Perhaps a slightly narrower waistline — but for now, I'm going with the strategy of “widening the shoulders instead of suppressing the waist.” The tailor will widen them by another half a centimeter, and we'll see the results at the next fitting. What do you think, gentlemen?

Some of you may have noticed that I haven't been posting as much lately. There are a few reasons for that, including busyness with work, but the primary reason is that I feel a bit like a shaggy dog right now. I haven't been able to shave my head for a few weeks, and it'll likely be at least a couple more before I can. Why, you ask? The humorous answer is that I spent much of my teens and twenties pretending that sunscreen was the enemy... A few months ago, I got a referral from my primary care physician to a dermatologist to look at a couple of spots on top of my head. One of them ended up being a basal cell carcinoma, so we scheduled a procedure in January to deal with it. It was a pretty big spot - we expected the area to be removed to be about the size of a quarter. It ended up being significantly larger; I lost about a silver-dollar-sized piece of scalp. Luckily, they didn't have to do a skin graft - they were able to do a large, S-shaped incision and pull it together. As a result, my head needed to have been bandaged in one form or another until the past week or so. I'm still bandaging it, though a smaller area now, just for convenience. I have to keep applying a combination of medicated ointment and Vaseline until it finishes healing. But here's my point, gentleman - take care of your skin. Go out of your way to take care of your skin. I'm 45 years old, and this was the biggest BCC my surgeon had removed in a couple of years and the largest they had ever seen in someone under 50. And it was a surprise, even to them, after the procedure began. You see, it grew in a somewhat abnormal manner and was much larger than it appeared. As a result, I will now be closely checked by a dermatologist every six months for the foreseeable future. What started out as a spot that seemed to be probably nothing turned into a bigger spot that still seemed to be probably nothing. Then, one day, it turned into a spot that was probably something - when it became a recurring sore that healed and returned. My primary care physician, even at that point, thought it was likely just something precancerous, but, of course, advised and referred me to a specialist. The rest of the story, you already know.

Next week I’ll be attending “NOVACONN” – that’s our very official, very serious internal name for “everyone in the company meets up and tries to look more strategic than confused.” It’s the annual gathering where: - We get the State of the Company address - Sit through workshops about “where we’re going” (fingers crossed it’s not to another re-org) - And choose our own breakout sessions like a corporate version of speed dating for career paths. Now, onto the *real* crisis: clothes. For the flight out Wednesday night, I’ll be in jeans, a shirt, and a jacket – you know, “I might get upgraded” casual. Thursday is where the fake panic hits DEFCON 1. It’s the first day of formalities: - C-Suite State of the Company (SotC) chats – my personal highlight - Workshops - Breakouts in the afternoon Thursday Night there’s a Gala Dinner with a “Dancing Through the Ages” theme. My group (ACT) drew the 2000s, which means I’ve decided to fully lean into my inner “popped collar menace.” The plan: - 3 polos (because one popped collar is never enough) - White chinos (pray for no red wine incidents) - Blue suede sneakers (Elvis would be proud, my podiatrist maybe less so) And I, as always, will be *that* person in a suit while 90% of the company rocks “business casual-ish, please don’t look too closely.” The problem: I have **three** M.J. Bale favourites and can’t decide which one to take. Cue fashion anxiety. The contenders are: 1. **Harwood Blue Birdseye Weave Suit** – Classic, sharp, “I read the quarterly report *twice*” energy. 2. **Collins Brown Suit** – Earthy, dependable, “I know where the good coffee is” vibes. 3. **Bonato Washed Cherry Suit** – Statement piece, “I have a personality and possibly a podcast” level bold. I **will** take whichever one is most popular according to your votes and wear it on Thursday. If opinion is strong enough (and my overpacking tendencies prevail), I might bring a second for the half-day Friday, which includes a Breakfast Gathering and more workshops, and the flight home.